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"Many high-end climbers (5.11-5.15 climbers) regularly employ the use of fixed draws on their projects. In other words, they leave draws fixed on hard bolted sport climbs so that they can easily come back in order to continue working on the ascent of their routes. Many sport climbers will come back to the same climb over and over again, sometimes logging weeks or even months, working to successfully complete their climbs.

This technique of "working" a climb used to be looked-down upon, but has become the norm for people trying to climb very difficult routes. The technically hardest rock climbs in the world are now regularly being climbed this way.

The issue with this technique is that it is now common for climbing draws to be almost permanently left on hard climbs. There are two problems with this. First, some land managers don't like the nearly permanent installation of these draws. And second, the fact that these draws have been left behind provides a major temptation to individuals who don't know any better and for thieves.

In the Winter of 2010, three climbers confronted an individual who was systematically stripping draws off of hard climbs at Smith Rock State Park. Instead of physically attacking the individual for stealing draws, the climbers kept level heads and educated the individual about what he was doing and how it affected them. Luckily for the climbing community, these climbers elected to film the confrontation for educational purposes. A video of the incident can be seen below:

There are many climbers out there who don't like the fact that there are bolts in the rock. And there are many climbers out there who really don't like the fact the bolts have draws permanently affixed to them. But when all is said and done, regardless of your beliefs about this issue, if you know that the draws have been set to assist in a climber's ascent, then taking them is stealing."

From my experience, almost all nylon/Al fixed draws are rather manky. I would not want to steal them! Perhaps these are climbers' project draws (up for weeks to a season) which are generally in better shape than the multi-season nylon/Al fixed draws.

As far as I am concerned, true fixed draws should be the best SS cable draws possible and made to blend in with the surroundings as much as possible. Anything else, it would be better not to have anything fixed at all.

Logged

"You have to decide to do a flag, where you can broke your vertebrae or a barn door depending of your pro" - the poster formerly known as Champ